Well-casing.



F. F. HILL.

WELL CASING.

APPLICATION FILED 001:. 20, 1910.

1,020,696, Patented Mar.'19, 1912.

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casing.

UNITE S FRANK F. HILL, OF LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

WELL-CASING.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 19, 1912.

Application filed October 20, 1910. Serial No. 588,214.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK F. HILL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles and State of California, have invented a new and useful ell-Casing, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to casing for driven or bored wells, and one object of the invention is to provide a casing which will be of uniform sectional area throughout its length, so as to minimize the resistance of penetration or driving into the ground by elimination of the collars generally used for connecting the sections of the casing.

Another object of the invention is to provide a casing which can be extended or built up while the drilling operation is going on, so that it will not be necessary to stop drilling and remove the tools for insertion of additional sections.

A further object of the invention is to provide a casing which can be lowered as fast as the hole is being drilled, thereby eliminating the risk of caving in of the hole beneath the casing. In the usual practice it is requisite to drill the hole some little dis tance below the casing and then withdraw the tools and sink the casing, and in order to reduce the time required in this operation, it is necessary to drill the hole at each operation a considerable distance below the bottom of the casing and when the tools are removed, there is liability of the hole caving in beneath the casing. By providing a casing which can be builtup or extended without removing the tools, I am enabled to lower the casing as fast as the hole is bored, so that no considerable space is left below the casing and the danger of caving in is obviated.

Another object of the invention is to provide a well casing which will be of substantially uniform strength throughout.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafter.

The accompanying drawings illustrate the invention, and referring thereto:

Figure 1 is a perspective of one of the elements of which the casing is composed. Fig. 2 is a perspective showing a set of said elements assembled to form a section of the Fig. 3 is a perspective showing several lengths or sections f the casing in assembled position. & is a h rizontal section of the casing. Fig. 5 is a vertical section on line m w in Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a side elevation of a portion of the casing with the upper sections partly broken away.

The casing is built up of sheet metal elements formed as segments of cylinders and having flanges whereby said elements may be attached together to form a cylindrical body or section. The casing is preferably formed with inner and outer members, each comprising sections built up as stated and said sections of the outer casing breaking joint with those of the inner casing.

1 designates one of the elements of the inner casing formed as a cylindrical segment and having flanges 2 at its edges extending radially from the cylindrical surface, said flanges being provided with perforations 3 for reception of fastening means. Three segments may be used in each section, said segments being of such circumferential length that when assembled together, as shown in Fig. 2, they will complete a cylindrical body or segment, the flanges 2 of the said elements being placed together and being fastened by means of rivets 4, after positioning of the outer layer of the casing as hereinafter described. The segmental elements 1 may all be the same length, but arranged at different heights, so that the top of the upper element is above the top of the intermediate element, a distance equal to one-third the length of the elements and the top of the intermediate element is located a similar distance above the top of the lower element. There are thus left at the upper and lower ends of the sections (see Fig. 2) protruding flange portions 2 which are adapted for fastening to the neXtsections above and below, the inner casing having been built up by securing elements or sections of elements on top of one another by means of such protruding flange portions. The outer casing member is built up on the inner casing member, the outer segmental elements 6 being placed outside of the segmental elements 1 and being provided with flanges 7 extending over or outside of the flanges 2 of the elements 1 and with perforations 8 registering with perforations 3 in the elements 1, so that the rivets 4 secure the outer casing elements to the inner casing elements to form a continuous casing. The outer casing elements break joint with he inner casing e emen so t t th b ak or joi ts are r li ibuted uniformly throughou h l ngth 0. elemen giv ng Sill)? stantially uniform strength. Each element, both in the inner and outer portions or layers of the casing, abuts at its top and bottom with the ends of adjacent elements, so that a smooth surface is presented both on the inside and on the outside as regards longitudinal direction, the casing being of uniform cross sectional area and there being no obstructions due to projections except those presented by the rivet heads. The lower end of the casing may be shod with any suitable shoe, such as indicated at 10, attached to the lower section of the casing in any suitable manner.

The casing above described is lowered and raised by any suitable means, for example, gripping devices adapted to engage the outside of the casing. It will be noted that the casing can be built up in situ, by placing the casing elements in place and fastening them without removing the drilling tools or interfering with the operation thereof.

All of the flanges on the section elements are vertically extending and are located at the vertically extending edges of said elements, the horizontally extending edges at the upper and lower ends of said elements being unflanged so that the wall of each element is of uniform thickness from end to end, and presents an edge at its upper and lower end which is of the same thickness of the body of the wall. Moreover, when the vertical series of section elements or segment-s in the same vertical line are presented end to end, they abut against one another with a butt or flush joint, presenting a flush or even surface inside and outside. While each layer of elements thus forms butt joints at their upper and lower ends, the inner and outer layers form lap joints with one another as above described, giving the necessary strength to the joint. This lap joint construction applies not only to the body of the section elements but also to the flanges, fastening the same together as shown in Figs. 3 and 6, the flanges of adjacent segments overlapping at their upper and lower ends, the segments in each section which are in different angular position being arranged at diflerent heights, so that their ends overlap with the ends of adjacent sections. In the case of the flanges also, the horiiontally extending edges at the upper and lower ends thereof, form a butt or flush joint with the adjacent edge of the element next above or below the same, so that the cross section of the casing is uniform from top to bottom and no flanges or collars are presented such as would interfere with the driving of the casing through the ground.

What I claim is:

1. A well casing comprising cylindrical segments, having flanges along their vertical walls, said segments being arranged in a plurality of vertical series with their ends abutting the walls of said segments between said flanges, and including the joint-s, being of uniform thickness, said series being disposed with their vertical flanges in contact to form a. cylindrical casing, the vertical flange of each segment overlapping, at its upper and lower ends, the vertical flanges of the segments above and below the same, and means securing each vertical flange to the adjacent and. overlapping flanges of the adjacent segments.

2. A well casing comprising a plurality of sections arranged in vertical series, each section comprising a plurality of segments having vertical flanges along their vertical edges, with their ends abutting, the walls of said segments, between the said flanges, being of uniform thickness throughout, including the portion thereof adjacent to the joints between each section and the sections above and below the same, the segments of each section extending at different heights, so that their flanges overlap with the flanges of the adjacent sections, means securing the flanges of the segments in each section together, and means securing the flanges of each of the segments in each section to the overlapping flanges of the segments of the sections above and below the same.

3. A well casing comprising a plurality of sections arranged in vertical series, each sect-ion comprising a plurality of segments having vertical flanges along their vertical edges, the segments of each section extending at different heights, so that their flanges overlap with the flanges of the adjacent section, means securing the flanges of the segments in each section together, and means securing the flanges of each .of the segments in each section to the overlapping flanges of the segments of the adjacent sections above and below the same, each segment being of uniform thickness from top to bottom, and making a butt joint at its upper and lower ends with the adjacent segments of adjacent sections so that the wall of the casing is of uniform thickness from top to bottom.

4. A well casing composed of inner and outer members, each member comprising a vertical series of sections formed of sheet metal cylindrical segments having vertical flanges along their vertical edges, said flanges of the inner and outer casing members extending side by side, with the flanges of the inner member extending between the flanges of the outer member, means extending through the adjacent flanges, securing the flanges of the inner and outer members together in each section.

5. A well casing composed of inner and outer members, each member comprising a vertical series of sections formed of sheet metal cylindrical segments having vertical flanges along their vertical edges, said flanges of the inner and outer casing members extending side by side, with the flanges of the inner member extending between the flanges of the outer member, means extending through the adjacent flanges, securing the flanges of the inner and outer members together in each section, the segments of each member being of uniform thickness throughout from top to bottom and abutting at their ends to form a double casing of uniform thickness from top to bottom.

6. A Well casing composed of inner and outer members, each member comprising a vertical series of sections formed of sheet metal cylindrical segments having vertical flanges along their vertical edges, said flanges of the inner and outer casing members extending side by side, with the flanges of the inner member extending between the flanges of the outer member, means extending through the adjacent flanges, securing the flanges of the inner and outer members together in each section, the segments of each member being of uniform thickness throughout from top to bottom and abutting at their ends to form a double casing of uniform thickness from top to bottom, and the segments of adjacent sections overlapping on each member With the adjacent sections of the same member and With the adjacent sections of the other member.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Los Angeles, California, this 12th day of October, 1910.

FRANK F. HILL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C 

